Marshal of Indian Air Force Arjan Singh has been hospitalised in critical condition at the Research and Referral Hospital in New Delhi on Saturday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman visited him at the R&R.
The Marshall, 98, suffered a cardiac arrest in morning, a defence ministry statement said.
“Received messages that Marshal of IAF Arjan Singh was suspected to have had massive heart attack in morning and was brought to the hospital,” Sitharaman said after visiting the Marshal.
“We hope he (Marshal of Indian Air Force Arjan Singh) will recover at the earliest. His condition remains critical,” she added.
Prime Minister Modi also tweeted about the Marshal and “prayed for his speedy recovery.”
A Padma Vibhushan awardee, the Marshal retired from the Air Force in 1969.
The Marshal has flown over 60 aircraft and remained a flyer until the end of his career with the Indian Air Force.
In recognition of his lifelong services, the government conferred the rank of the "Marshal of the Indian Air Force" on Arjan Singh on January 28, 2002.
This was remarkable because it made him the only officer of the Indian Air Force to accomplish this feat.
It also means that he is the only living Indian military officer with five-star rank after Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, who passed away in June 2008.
Recognising the insurmountable contribution of the Air Force in the 1965 war, he became the Air Chief Marshal from the rank of Chief of Air Staff, which made him the first ever officer of the Indian Air Force to attain this historical achievement.
